2010 Alfa Romeo MiTo

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We drive the Alfa Romeo MiTo 1,4T Distinctive

For a new generation of Alfisti

Published in The Witness motoring on Wednesday February 17th, 2010

Back in my misspent youth Alfa Romeo’s Giulietta and Giulia were highly engineered, exciting to drive and notoriously fragile. Alfas spoke to your soul, girls loved them and they (the cars) seduced all the good stuff out of your wallet. But they were worth it.

Then came the “1750” Berlinetta and the magic went away. With a few exceptions like the Alfasud, Alfas moved upmarket (read adult and expensive) and lost their youthful fan base.

In an attempt to correct past wrongs, Alfa Romeo released its potent supermini, the MiTo, in 2008. For those who care, MiTo is an acronym for two Italian cities, Milano where the car was designed and Torino where it is built. “Mito” apparently means “myth” or “legend” in its home language as well.

The car is aimed at wooing a new generation of enthusiastic young Alfisti (if you have to ask, you don’t deserve one; go buy a Fiat) and in the hope of snagging some slightly older folk, petrol-veined, but needing to downsize in these harsh times.

It is a three-door hatchback aimed squarely at the MINI, available overseas with a choice of three engines and gifted with some interesting electronic toys. Luckily for us, MiTo is offered with only one engine in SA – the 1 400 cc turbocharged petrol unit whipped out of the Fiat Bravo T-Jet Sport. There is also only one model here, the Distinctive.

Possibly the most interesting electronic toy is its “DNA” system. By means of a switch on the centre console, one can switch between “Dynamic”, “Normal” and “All-weather” driving modes. Each position selects a combination of engine output, steering and handling characteristics to suit differing driving conditions. It’s common enough in some expensive SUVs and saloons, but a novelty in the just-sub quarter-million Rand bracket.

Normal mode is just that, suited for everyday driving with more relaxed steering response and torque restricted to about 206 Nm. All-weather mode cuts back on power and slows steering and accelerator response just a bit, so you don’t over react in wet or slippery conditions. Dynamic mode is for serious driving, with tauter steering and accelerator response and the engine’s full 230 Nm of torque on tap.

Another item worth mentioning is the Q2 electronic system that acts on the brakes to provide the effect of a self-locking differential. To prevent the inner wheel from losing grip, so widening trajectory when accelerating out of a bend, Q2 applies braking force to that wheel and redistributes torque to the outer wheel enjoying greater traction, resulting in a measurable increase in cornering ability.

Naturally, ABS with ASR and Brake Assist, and seven airbags are standard safety equipment; with Hill Hold a useful assist to taking off on upward inclines.

So what’s like to live with? Height- and reach adjustable steering and a driver’s seat adjustable for height and with built-in lumbar adjustment, ensures a comfortable driving position. It goes well, with 100 km/h coming up in just over eight seconds and sprinting up to 210 km/h if you have no fear for the state of your wallet. The car sits firmly on the road and corners as if on rails.

Steering feel is a bit dead, though and gets harsh if Dynamic mode is selected. It’s OK for quick dashes up twisty hills or possibly for track work, but I couldn’t live with this mode on a daily basis. On grooved concrete roads like some close to ‘Maritzburg, it’s actually painful.

Forward visibility is good, but to the sides and rear it is less so – rather like sitting in a tunnel. Boot space and rear seat head and legroom are what one would expect of a small car, although entry and egress is somewhat better than others I have tried. Big 17” wheels such as those fitted to the MiTo usually laugh at our city’s speed humps, but the diabolical protrusions triumphed in this case.

The MiTo is a Car of the Year finalist, appealing to the majority of SA motoring journalists. I didn’t vote for its inclusion simply because I hadn’t driven it before the cut-off date. Would I have? It’s competent and good value for money by today’s standards, but definitely no soul and with other great competitors in the price band, I probably wouldn’t.

The numbers

Price: R241 000 basic or R250 000 as tested

Engine: 1 368 cc turbocharged petrol four cylinder

Power: 114 kW at 5 500 rpm

Torque: 230 Nm at 3 000 rpm

Zero to 100 km/h: 8,3 seconds

Maximum speed: 210 km/h

Real life fuel consumption over 328 km: 8,4 l/100 km

Tank: 45 litres

Warranty: 3 years/100 000 km

Service plan: 6 years/90 000 km

Service intervals: 30 000 km/24 months

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This is a one-man show, which means that road test cars entrusted to me are driven only by me. Some reviewers hand test cars over to their partners to use as day-to-day transport and barely experience them for themselves.

What this means to you is that every car reviewed is given my own personal evaluation and receives my own seat of the pants judgement - no second hand input here.

Every car goes through real world testing; on city streets littered with potholes, speed bumps and rumble strips, on freeways and if its profile demands, dirt roads as well.

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